10/25 & 10/26: Sufjan Stevens @ Paramount Theatre

Prolific singer/songwriter Sufjan Stevens will grace the Bay Area with two consecutive performances at the Paramount Theater in Oakland next Monday and Tuesday, October 25 and 26.

Sufjan Stevens, photo by Marzuki Stevens.

Stevens’ eclectic albums range in style from lo-fi acoustic to full symphonic orchestration, from short banjo-picking folk songs to 25-minute electronic-based productions. The Michigan-born musician is perhaps best known for his 50 States Project, which he announced in 2003 with the release of his third album Michigan. The idea was to write an album about every state in the country, delving into obscure histories and personalities. His second concept album in the series, Illinois (2005), received rave reviews, especially the richly orchestrated single “Chicago” and the biographical “John Wayne Gacy, Jr.,” about the infamous Chicago serial killer.

Fan-generated video for “Chicago”:

Stevens has garnered much attention for his unconventional album-release approach. In 2004 he released a non- state-related, research-based album, Seven Swans, a sparse album of beautiful and heartbreaking folk songs. Avalanche (2006) was a collection of outtakes and extra tracks from the Illinois album. Later that year he released a boxed set of holiday music, Songs for Christmas. He returned to a geographical concept with last year’s BQE, a multimedia homage/orchestral suite about the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

Just a few months ago Stevens released the so-called “EP” All Delighted People, which contains 8 tracks and plays for over an hour (not the standard length for an “EP”). His newest project, The Age of Adz, was released less than two weeks ago and has already reached #7 on the Billboard 200 chart. It is a stunning feat for an indie artist (Stevens has released all of his albums on Asthmatic Kitty Records, which he founded in 1999) to keep company with Billboard’s #1 artist, the highly-commercial Lil Wayne.

Inspired by the paintings of schizophrenic artist Royal Robertson, the album is itself somewhat schizophrenic, but in the best way possible. Showcasing Stevens’ range as a multi-instrumentalist and composer, the album received the highly-coveted “Best New Music” ranking on Pitchfork.

Famous for his incredible live performances, complete with outlandish costumes, stunning multimedia backdrops and varying degrees of symphonic accompaniment, Stevens will undoubtably put on another set of unforgettable shows next week. So make sure to grab some tickets today.